Vicky's Blog: Ride To Mydala Kere & Mandaragiri Betta

Destination: “Mandaragiri Betta (Karnataka)” popularly known as Basadi Betta among the locals is one of the important pilgrim centers for Jainism in Karnataka. Pinchi shaped 81 ft high Gurumandir is first of its kind in Jain History declared as a Unique world record. The Guru Mandir is dedicated to the Digambar Jain ascetic Acharya 108 Sri Shanthinsagarji Maharaj. Shri Mukha Mantapa at the base has installed tall statue of Chandranatha Thirthankara inaugurated in 2011. The Mandaragiri hill is a small hillock with well carved 435 steps which houses 4 ancient temples of which 2 are from 12th century and other two from 14th century.

Rider Details:

Vikram (Myself) – Hero Impulse

Arjun – Yamaha FZ

Travel Distance: Approximately 65 KMS from Bangalore

After getting “Hiffyfied @ Hampi”, it was time to add some memories to the bucket. It had been a while that I had not been on any rides on my motorbike. Not that I did not want to go because I am always up for a motorbike ride. Had few issues to be fixed with my Hero Impulse which was getting delayed due to different circumstances. After a long wait, finally it was time to unleash the rider within. I badly wanted to go on a motorbike ride and relive the past experiences. I was desperately waiting for the weekend so that I can execute the plan than keeping it pending. All this while, when I wake up on Mondays, the only thought which would haunt me is what did I do over the weekend as it had been normal lazy weekends for quite some time. Hence, this time I had made up my mind that I am not gonna spend the weekend lazing around at home and rather do something exciting.

With that thought, I called up my friend Arjun and asked him if he is up for a ride. Without a second thought he replied, “Yes”. That was a positive sign. The plan was to ride on Saturday provided I get my bike fixed by then. However, I got to know that I will get the bike only by Saturday late night, so I had to post pone it to Sunday. While it was confirmed that I would be riding this weekend, the destination was not finalized yet. I didn’t want to go on a very long ride as the bike was just out of garage and I wanted to check how is it performing. So, I was looking for some nearby locations which is ideal for sunrise or sunset.

While I was exploring the internet to search locations nearby, I was even asking few other rider friends for the location. And as usual, the rider friends turned out more informative than the internet and after few suggestions I received, I decided to visit Mydala Kere (Lake) & Mandaragiri Betta (Hill). Although these are two names, these are same location. From the foothill of Mandaragiri Hill, there is a gravel road towards the right which leads to the lake. So, now that the location was finalized, it was time to execute the ride. I couldn’t have a sound sleep Saturday night as the excitement of the ride kept waking me up every hour. Always happens to me when I have to travel somewhere early morning. It’s a kind of phobia or fear of not waking up on time the next day and missing out on the plan 😉.

I woke up at 4:15 and after a shower got ready for the ride and left home at 5:25 AM. Met Arjun at Shell Petrol Pump near Orion Mall as it was the nearest meet up point for both of us. Started the ride at 5:40 AM from Shell Petrol Pump. Decided to pin the speed around 60 to 75 kms/ hr. I personally do not like to speed up and just twist the throttle to reach the destination early. It is more of a race than a ride as you will only be focusing on the road ahead of you so that you don’t crash into anything. What is the fun if you do not enjoy the views, cold breeze and every other moment of the ride? With that being said, we had our first pit stop at Nelamangala. While it was foggy and cold, a sip of hot chai was just perfect for that moment.

After sipping the tea, we continued our ride and reached Dabaspet where we took a detour from the Highway and joined a service road as we had to go on the other side of the town. This is the same road which goes to Goravanahalli Mahalakshmi Temple and Devarayana Durga (DD Hills). The road from here was amazing. Once off the highway, there was freshness in the air and the view started getting better and better. That is when we had the first sight of sunrise.

Sun Kissed

We continued our ride towards Koratagere village. The early morning village scenes were epic. The farmers were just starting their day and heading towards their farm on their bullock cart, the roosters waking up the ones who were still hugging their beds, the cows grazing on their breakfast, dogs and cats going out on a morning walk/ jog, the simplicity of their lifestyle, the foggy morning with very well maintained small curved roads cutting through the villages and farms was pure bliss. Enjoying every moment of the ride, we soon reached the foothill of Mandaragiri Betta (Hill). You can park the bike at the foothill and climb the steps to reach the Temple which is on top of the hill. Or, take a gravel road followed by some extreme off-road trail which will take you and your bike to the mountain top.

Foothill Of Mandaragiri Betta (Hill)

We did not want to leave the bikes at the foothill, so we did what we wanted to do. We took a right turn from the foothill on a gravel road which heads to the Mydala Kere (Lake). After riding through the gravel road for some distance, you need to ride off road to reach the lake. Well, I must say that it was a piece of cake for my bike. To be honest, my bike was happier than me as it was the first time it was doing what it is meant to do (OFFROADING) 😉. The lake was peaceful and serene. The cool breeze from the lake, the soothing sound of the tiny waves meeting the shore and greeting each other, the ducklings taking a dip and learning the art of swimming in the lake with their parents, the birds chirping around which felt like they were having their breakfast discussion and planning their itinerary of spending Sunday with their friends and family made us feel like forgetting everything and feeling one among them.

Mydala Kere (Lake)

While we were enjoying the peace and serenity of the lake, it felt like my bike was saying “Let’s Go, Let’s Go”. It was all excited to try the extreme off-road trail which heads to the mountain top. Saying Adios to the lake, we headed to the most fun part of the ride (Extreme Off- Roading). As the FZ struggled a bit to hold on to the gravel road, the Impulse was nailing it like a pro and within no time made it to the top of the mountain. Once we reach the mountain, there are four temples, two of which are from 12th century dedicated to Bhagwan Chandranatha and other from 14th century dedicated to Parshwanatha and Suparshwanatha. Many saints visited this place for meditation. Although we did not get a chance to go inside the temple as the priest is not available throughout the day there. He only comes at certain time to offer prayers to the deity. I had read that we can actually collect the key from a small house which is located in the foothill. But, we did not want to do so much of research and waste time in finding the key to the temple.

Jain Temple On Top Of The Mountain

The 360-degree view is breathtaking from top of the mountain. The view of Coconut plantation, Mydala Kere (Lake), Pichi shaped Gurumandir and other mountains with boulders perched on top of each other. At a far distance I could see a train passing by, which appears to be the mountain that is well known as Makali Durga Trek point. The panoramic view from the top of the mountain makes you feel like you are watching a beautiful painting of mother nature. We rode our bikes till the edge of the mountain and took some pictures for memory. Sat there for some time and enjoyed the amazing view, calmness and serenity of such a wonderful place. Although the sun had started getting little furious, we did not feel it scorching as we were on the top of the mountain and it was a blend of cold breeze and sunlight. It was time for us to leave so started descending the treacherous off road and reached at the foothill. One last look at the Mandaragiri Betta (Hill) from the foothill, we bid farewell to it and started riding back to Bangalore.

Now that we realized that our tummies were growling, breakfast was our top priority. Just after we cross the village road and connect to the State Highway, we saw a small shop serving Idli and Lemon Rice. From my past experience, the taste of food at such small places will be to the next level. And we were not disappointed this time either. We were served with steaming hot idlis and chutney which was yummilicious. We also tasted the Lemon Rice which was delicious. We hogged like we had not seen food and were starving from past few days. The rates are very reasonable, and we felt it is very less for the quantity and the quality of the food that we had. You won’t believe that our total bill was Rs. 95.00 only. Moreover, the hospitality of the mid aged husband and wife who run that small hotel was something that was priceless. Had we been to other highway side Dhaba, Darshini or Hotels, they would have charged us a bomb with half of what we had at this place. Keeping money aside, it is again the hospitality that we received at this small shop. I would strongly recommend tasting the food here if someone is visiting Mandaragiri Betta (Hill) or Devarayana Durga (DD Hills). This place is exactly next to the left turn that you take from State Highway to Mandaragiri Betta (Hill).

Hotel Where We Filled Our Tummies

With happy tummies, we were all set to leave from there and just out of curiosity, I asked the hotel guy as to how far was DD Hills from that location. He said it is around 3 Kms. For a moment we thought, we are so close so why don’t we ride till DD Hills. But, as it was getting hot, we thought of riding to DD Hills some other time so that we can enjoy the early morning there. Well, after a small chit chat, we started our ride back to Bangalore. As I always say, the ride or drive while you are returning from such wonderful location is never peaceful. We always leave such places with a heavy heart and a frown face. We were riding with a hope to visit that place once again and recollecting all the memories that we made on a wonderful Sunday morning. As we were nearing the National Highway, we were getting more closer to the concrete forests as we once again started feeling the dust, traffic, unnecessary honks and pollution. We did not feel like taking a pit stop as it was getting hot and traffic had started increasing. After the breakfast point at the small hotel, we rode in one stretch nonstop till a bakery near my home. Stopped for refreshment and recollected the memories we had from this ride and we departed. Although, it was a short ride, it was a memorable one.

Enjoy the pictures below while I signoff until the next blog 😊